American Folk Art Museum

American Folk Art Museum Candid, genuine, and unexpected, we are the nation’s museum of folk and self-taught artists. Admission is always free.

Since 1961, the American Folk Art Museum has been the leading institution shaping the understanding of art by the self-taught through its exhibitions, publications, and educational programs.

Happy Labor Day from AFAM! We're proud to feature works by many working-class artists in our collection, including "Work...
09/07/2026

Happy Labor Day from AFAM! We're proud to feature works by many working-class artists in our collection, including "Workers' Holiday—Coney Island" by Ralph Fasanella.⁠
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Ralph Fasanella (1914–1997) was a working-class New Yorker and renowned painter of “social reality.” Through his colorful and dense compositions, he depicted complex themes of social and political unrest, historic events, the importance of leisure, and the unique energy of New York City and its citizens. ⁠
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The Ralph Fasanella Collection and Archive at the American Folk Art Museum preserves and continues the artist’s legacy of social engagement. Learn more about Fasanella's life and work: folkartmuseum.org/resources/fasanellacollection
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🎨"Worker’s Holiday – Coney Island," Ralph Fasanella (1914–1997), New York City, 1965, oil on canvas, 59 x 96 1/2 in. American Folk Art Museum, New York, gift of Maurice and Margo Cohen, Birmingham, Michigan, 2002.1.1.

09/04/2026

“Self-Made” is in its final days!

“Self-Made:A Century of Inventing Artists” explores three forms of artistic self-making––self-portraits, alter egos, and auto-biographies––centering self-taught artists in their own terms.
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See the exhibition before it closes on Sunday, September 13. Admission is always free!

Spend September with us at these upcoming programs—some online, some at the Museum, always free. Follow this link for fu...
09/02/2026

Spend September with us at these upcoming programs—some online, some at the Museum, always free. Follow this link for full details, including how to register: folkartmuseum.org/programs/upcoming
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📷: Photographer unidentified, Untitled [Seated child posing with book, Early to mid-20th century. Hand-tinted photograph, Sheet: 6 7/8 x 5 ”. American Folk Art Museum, New York, gift of Peter J. Cohen.

The clock is ticking on “Self-Made!” ⏰“Self-Made: A Century of Inventing Artists” takes a fresh look at the idea of the ...
08/29/2026

The clock is ticking on “Self-Made!” ⏰

“Self-Made: A Century of Inventing Artists” takes a fresh look at the idea of the “self-taught artist,” centering artists who worked outside traditional art-school, gallery, and museum systems—and challenges assumptions about what it means to be an artist.

Featuring 60 artists and works spanning painting, sculpture, photography, video, and more, the exhibition explores three forms of artistic self-making: self-portraits, alter egos, and autobiographies.

On view Wednesday–Sunday, 11:30 AM–6 PM, through September 13. Admission is always free!⁠

Learn more: https://folkartmuseum.org/exhibitions/self-made

🎨 Clementine Hunter (1887–1988, Natchitoches Parish, Louisiana), “Untitled,” 1975, oil on board with photograph, 23 1/2 × 24 in., American Folk Art Museum, New York, Gift of Thomas Whitehead in memory of Ora Garland Williams, 2005.16.1. Photo by Gavin Ashworth © Cane River Art Corporation. Detail.

Wishing a very happy National Dog Day to all of our four-legged friends! 🐾⁠⁠✏️ Nellie Mae Rowe (1900–1982), “Brown Dog,”...
08/26/2026

Wishing a very happy National Dog Day to all of our four-legged friends! 🐾⁠
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✏️ Nellie Mae Rowe (1900–1982), “Brown Dog,” c. 1970. Crayon and pencil on paper, 18 × 24 in. American Folk Art Museum, Gift of Chuck and Jan Rosenak © Estate of Nellie Mae Rowe / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York. Detail.

On Wednesday, September 9, the American Folk Art Museum will join the Whitney Museum of American Art for a conversation ...
08/23/2026

On Wednesday, September 9, the American Folk Art Museum will join the Whitney Museum of American Art for a conversation on the art of Minnie Evans. With work currently on view at both institutions, the program will explore Evans’s unique mixed-media drawing practice and reconsider her position within American art.

The conversation will consider Evans’s vital sense of color, shape, and place, while recontextualizing her otherworldly landscapes within the artistic traditions of the American South.

Learn more and register: https://folkartmuseum.org/programs/the-art-of-minnie-evans-a-conversation-09-09-26

✏️ Minnie Evans, Untitled (Day to Night with Beasts and Angels), 1966. Crayon and pencil on paper, 14 7/8 × 19 3/4 in. (37.78 × 50. 16 cm). Collection of Josh Feldstein. © The Estate of Minnie Evans. Detail.

Take it from "The New York Times": don’t miss our current exhibition, "Self-Made: A Century of Inventing Artists!"⁠⁠As N...
08/22/2026

Take it from "The New York Times": don’t miss our current exhibition, "Self-Made: A Century of Inventing Artists!"⁠
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As NYT writes: “The narratives surrounding self-taught artists are often steeped in passivity: They were driven by unseen forces and worked in isolation until someone discovered them. Such stories strip them of their agency. 'Self-Made' tries to challenge this tendency by gathering self-portraits, representations of alter egos, and autobiographical works by 60 self-taught artists.”⁠
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On view Wednesday–Sunday, 11:30 AM–6 PM, through September 13. Admission is always free!⁠

Learn more: https://folkartmuseum.org/exhibitions/self-made

We’re celebrating World Photo Day with these works by Marcel Bascoulard, currently on view in “Self-Made: A Century of I...
08/19/2026

We’re celebrating World Photo Day with these works by Marcel Bascoulard, currently on view in “Self-Made: A Century of Inventing Artists.”

From the 1940s until 1978, Marcel Bascoulard choreographed photographic self-portraits in which he posed in dresses of his own design, ranging from demure Victorian styles to bold futuristic constructions made of vinyl.

Over the years, his appearance changes—his shoulder-length hair grays and the wrinkles on his face become more defined. Yet he presents himself similarly in all of the photographs: standing with a confident gaze directed into the lens, as if to say, “This is who I am.”

See these works in “Self-Made” through September 13. Admission is always free.

📷 Marcel Bascoulard (1913–1978, France), Untitled (“Pose 3, 29 mai 71”), Asnières-lès-Bourges, France, May 29, 1971. Gelatin silver print. American Folk Art Museum, New York, Eva and Morris Feld Folk Art Acquisition Fund, with the support of Galerie Christophe Gaillard, Paris

📷 Marcel Bascoulard (1913–1978, France), Untitled (“29 janv 62 / Pose 3”), Asnières-lès-Bourges, France, January 29, 1962. Gelatin silver print, 5 × 3½ in. American Folk Art Museum, New York, Eva and Morris Feld Folk Art Acquisition Fund, with the support of Galerie Christophe Gaillard, Paris

Did you know you can enjoy a guided tour of our current exhibitions—completely free—several times a week?⁠⁠Our Closer-Lo...
08/18/2026

Did you know you can enjoy a guided tour of our current exhibitions—completely free—several times a week?⁠
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Our Closer-Look Tours offer an opportunity to discover folk and self-taught art with an AFAM Gallery Guide, who shares insights and stories about the works on view.⁠

Find upcoming dates: https://folkartmuseum.org/programs/upcoming

AFAM supports artists with intellectual and other developmental disabilities through our partnership with ArTech Collect...
08/15/2026

AFAM supports artists with intellectual and other developmental disabilities through our partnership with ArTech Collective. 🎨⁠
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Now celebrating its 10th anniversary, ArTech provides opportunities for artists to develop and express themselves creatively through inclusive, innovative and accessible approaches to traditional and new media.⁠
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These photos capture a recent workshop led by AFAM Educators and inspired by our current exhibition, “Self-Made: A Century of Inventing Artists,” at ArTech's Bronx studio.

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2 Lincoln Square
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10023

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Wednesday 11:30am - 6pm
Thursday 11:30am - 6pm
Friday 11:30am - 6pm
Saturday 11:30am - 6pm
Sunday 11:30am - 6pm

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